WELLINGTON, Fla. — There is positive news almost every day on the race to safely produce and distribute a coronavirus vaccine.
Pfizer said Wednesday that new test results show its vaccine is 95% effective, is safe and also protects older people most at risk of dying.
Outside a COVID-19 testing site in Palm Beach County, Randy Bianchi said he is thinking about all the promising vaccine news.
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"My thoughts are a little more positive than a few months ago because some of these reports are coming out," said Bianchi.
Two vaccines undergoing trials, one by Pfizer and the other by Moderna, are now showing upwards of being 94 percent effective, fueling speculation the government will fast track approval before the end of the year.
"With regard to the Pfizer vaccine, the problem is it must be kept like at 90 degrees below zero right up until it's administered," said West Palm Beach infectious disease specialist Dr. David Dodson.
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Dodson said because of the difficulty storing the vaccine, it will likely mean the government will be involved in distributing it.
According to a plan from Florida's Department of Health, the state will likely set up vaccination centers like the testing centers used now.
There will be a priority for those who get vaccinated first: health care workers, essential personnel, high-risk patients and older adults.
"The companies have tried to take themselves out of the political sphere and just stay in the scientific sphere, and that's what they should do because when scientists can review the data and are comfortable with it, then we'll be comfortable recommending it," Dodson said.
"Let's see how it goes. I'm not going to be among the first to get it anyway, and by the time it does roll around to the general public, I would think that we would know if there going [to be] significant side effects," Bianchi said.